"If you cant stand the heat, get out of the kitchen” is a common idiom telling those who are unable to deal with certain situations, not to get involved.
What a lot musicians are not aware of is that being a musician is a job like any other, and those who make this job seem like a joke are in fact not doing their job well. There is a reason why this line of work is often joked about:
“Don’t quit your day job!” is a phrase commonly heard by some people who despise failing musicians. More often than not, those musicians who do not take it seriously enough misrepresent the image of the industry. Which is why staying professional is very important.
So what does this all mean? It means that in order for music to be your job, you need to make it into a job yourself. No, scratch that, not just a job, but a career. This is your life. This is what you work hard for everyday and this is what your goal is to do in life. You either have this sense of drive to be a musician or you don’t. You cannot force yourself to do something you don’t want to do.
It works the same way a student works incredibly hard and studies really hard to get to their dream of being a doctor, a teacher, a scientist, a lawyer, an architect or any other jobs of this kind. Being a musician requires the same amount of work, if not more.
Why am I telling you all this? I will explain:
Two weeks ago, I was disturbed to learn that controversial Zimdancehall musician, Silent Killer refused to board a flight in Harare for a United Kingdom gig claiming he had a dream the plane was going to explode.
According to music promoter, Fred Matenga of Y2K Promotions in the UK, the Hatitongwi Nemasalad chanter had checked in at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport together with other musicians, but mysteriously retreated and went back to his car. Silent Killer was billed to perform alongside other top Zimbabwe artistes, who included, Alick Macheso and Mambo Dhuterere at the SAMA Festival UK 2025.
The musician, known for alleged lack of professionalism, could not board the flight, leading to the promotion team who had already advertised Silent Killer as one of the artistes to perform at the SAMA Festival, securing another ticket for US$1,500 to board an evening flight.
But the musician repeated his antics moments before his second flight and went on to lock himself in a toilet at the airport to avoid being importuned to board the plane.
“Silent Killer refused to board a UK-bound flight because he had a dream it would explode. He locked himself in the airport toilet,” Matenga said.
In my opinion, Silent Killer suffered from aerophobia.
Aerophobia or aviophobia, is a specific phobia involving an intense, irrational fear of flying or being on a plane. It can cause significant anxiety and panic, interfering with daily life and travel plans.
The anxiety brought about by the idea of being on a plane going to Britain must have overwhelmed the artist, hence the weird dream.
This is not the first time I have come across such situations by musicians.
Way back in 1997, Nigel Munyati, a Zimbabwean promoter who had planned to bring the late Bunny Wailer to Zimbabwe, lost a lot of money after paying the Jamaican singer who did not turn up.
Bunny Wailer had a well-documented fear of flying. Wilf Walker, a London-based promoter had made several attempts to get Bunny Wailer to fly from Kingston, Jamaica in order for him to perform in the United Kingdom. He would sign the contracts with Bunny Wailer through his management, Solomonic Records, which was based in Seven Sisters Road in London, but after the publicity had been done, Bunny Wailer never showed up.
In Zimbabwe, there were also many situations where musicians acted unprofessionally in a similar manner.
When I was manager of the band Transit Crew, we lost US$5000 when we were supposed to perform at an International Conference due to lack of professionalism. The lead singer did not turn up at the scheduled time and we lost our spot.
Other examples of unprofessional behaviour which go way back to 2015 include the Mafikizolo/Jah Prayzah show held at Odyssey Hotel in Kadoma where the late Soul Jah Love was also billed to perform but did not show up. No apology was given to the promoters, 2 Kings Entertainment or the fans. The expectant fans felt that they were short-changed. This was viewed as unprofessional behaviour.
But, wait a minute. Is this not the same artist who let Esau Mupfumi down on two occasions at The Platinum in Mutare before the Kadoma show by not appearing for scheduled shows? Wasn’t he acting unprofessionally when he failed to fulfill agreed performances which had been advertised, thus also letting his fans down?
There are several other concerts he did not fulfill after that. These include the Premier Plus Maheu Promotion show at Glamis Stadium and the Beitbridge show where he turned up the next morning after the scheduled time of performance,
Esau Mupfumi of Platinum in Mutare eventually engaged the police and went to personally fetch Soul Jah Love from Harare to make sure that he would appear for his performance.
Is this the kind of behaviour we want from a professional musician?
Unprofessional conduct refers to behaviour that violates established standards of professional conduct causing harm or negatively impacting the profession’s reputation. In music, not turning up for a scheduled show or concert after agreements have been made and contracts signed violates what is expected behaviour and should be penalised through legal action.
Is Silent Killer, going to be another Soul Jah Love? We will wait and see.
Remember there is a lot of stiff competition in this business. No matter how hard you work to bring yourself up, there is always someone out there working just as hard, to put you down.
When someone does something to help you, thank them. Return calls when you say you will, and don’t leave someone waiting for a response. If you show you are reliable and treat people with good will, it is more likely that you will receive that kind of treatment in return.
Do not get me wrong, playing music just for fun is great, and I have no problem with that. This is meant for those musicians who want to turn this passion into a career but don’t realise the work that needs to be put into it. This illusion that the music industry is easy and that everyone can do it by not doing business-related work has led many people down the wrong paths. The people you want to talk to and the people who guarantee your career (including your fans) are industry professionals and you should strive to be the same.
Stay professional, treat yourself seriously, and others will do the same. Try it and see how people start to treat you differently!
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